Its An Anderson Thing
by The Berryson Girls
Summary: Blaine was usually the romantic of the Anderson brothers. But when Cooper returned to Lima, he didn't expect tables to turn.
1. Auditorium Meeting

Blaine did not expect his big brother picking him up, especially at school. Cooper had talked to his brother and told him he'd be on Lima for this week since he needed a vacation from his hectic life back in Boston. His big brother failed to tell him when he was getting home, that's why he was utterly shocked when he saw him enter the Auditorium when the Glee Club was practicing a song for Nationals.  
>Cooper came in just as the group was finishing a very complex choreography. He sat down in one of the back rows and enjoyed the last minutes of the performance, reminding him of his time in Dalton and with his fellow Warblers. He focused on his brother and the notes he skillfully belted out; he also noticed his brother's boyfriend Kurt, it was easy to know who he was. But what got his attention was the girl's side of the group, something he found himself doing very often: three very hot girls in cheerleading uniforms, a cute Asian girl with blue streaks on her hair, the African American girl who was belting the high notes in the song and a tiny brunette. She was smiling and singing along to the chorus, dancing gracefully across the stage and he was struck by her abnormal beauty. No, not that she was weird looking or something, but there was something about her that caught his attention aside from the stereotypical girls in her group.<br>The song finished and the New Directions heard someone clapping coming from the back. The person walked slowly towards them and had a big grin. "_Shit"_ Blaine thought, finally realizing that this guy clapping was indeed his older brother Cooper. He looked like he just got here from the airport, since he was wearing jeans and a blue navy shirt, not his usual suit and tie attire. He looked at Mr. Schuster embarrassed and then jumped down to greet Cooper.

"_Hey there, it's my favorite and talented hobbit of a brother!"_ Cooper said, as he greeted Blaine with a big hug, "_I missed you buddy!"_ Blaine finished the hug and padded him on the back, saying "_I didn't know you were coming today. I could have picked you up from the airport, you know."_ Cooper laughed "_And have you miss practice, come on, I know how tight schedules are when Nationals are on their way."_ A cough interrupted the conversation, Blaine turned around to see Kurt standing there, arms crossed: "_So…"_ Blaine came forward to Kurt and brought him to face Cooper "_Oh, sorry, yeah. Cooper, this is my boyfriend Kurt Hummel."_ Cooper put his hand in front of Kurt and said "_Yeah, the good looking Anderson brother. Nice to meet you"_ Kurt shook his hand, the taller man giving him a strong grip. "_So, you are the guy that's been keeping him awake every night then?"_ Coop said, Blaine giving punching him in the arm. The smaller Anderson responded "_Don't start with the snarky comments, it's too early"_ and Cooper just laughed.

Cooper looked up at the stage and noticed that little brunette, along with the Asian girl, one of the blonde cheerleaders (since the other blonde and the Latina were in a corner petting each other) and the African American girl whispering to each other, looking straight on at Cooper. He was used to having this effect on girls, or women, and decided to wink playfully at them, especially at that cute little one. The girls giggled and the little brunette girl blushed and looked away, clearly embarrassed. He couldn't stop looking at her, even when both Blaine and Kurt were talking about something to Cooper and he was just nodding along. He then noticed a tall, kind of goofy looking guy take the brunette with him and giving her a kiss. "_Well, I'll be damned. All the good ones are taken"_ Cooper thought, but realized he actually said it out loud. Blaine and Kurt both looked up at where Cooper was staring and noticed their friend Rachel along with Finn. Blaine sighed, pressing his thumb and index fingers on the bridge of his nose, visibly frustrated and grabbed his brother by his arm and told him "_You better NOT think about doing what I think you want to do. She's engaged and her boyfriend is a pain in the ass."_ Cooper looked back at his brother and snorted "_Come on, B. Have a little faith in me, man"_ he said, as he squeezed his brother's arm, trying to give him more comfort to his words. "_Now, I'm starving. Can we go?"_ Cooper said to Blaine. "_Just, let me pick up my stuff in the back and I'll be back in 5"_ the smaller Anderson brother answered back. He started to walk up the stairs to the stage with Kurt and jogged down to his brother: "_If you, as much start talking to Rachel, I'm gonna kick you in the shins"_ he said, looking up at his brother's eyes. "_Seriously Declan, relax"_ Blaine suddenly started turning red, realizing what Cooper just said "_Don't call me Declan in front of people we're not related to, James." _ And Blaine ran up the stairs again, joining Kurt, who was waiting patiently in the middle of the stage. Cooper went back to the seats and sat on one of them, propping his feet up on the back of the front chair and resting his arms behind his head. He did not need to say anything to that Rachel girl; he just stared at her, who was standing with that tree-looking guy next to the right side curtain. "_When I set my sights on something, I surely get it. No matter who is in my way,"_ Cooper thought while a malicious grin formed, "_It's an Anderson thing."_


	2. Dinner Plans

It's now Thursday and he basically had only 3 days left to spend with his younger brother and his parents. This past week in Lima has become a blur for Cooper. He had planned to spend as much time as possible with Blaine or his mom and dad, since he didn't get to see them often. But he had to run some errands for the hospital he works for in Boston and couldn't manage to see much of his favorite person in the world because, when he got home at the end of the day, Blaine was either sleeping, studying or making out with Kurt in his room.  
>He woke up early this morning and decided to go for a jog, also hoping to run into Blaine before he went to school. After getting ready Cooper went down to the kitchen and found his mother talking to Blaine, who was having breakfast on the counter. She saw Cooper standing in the doorway of the kitchen and greeted him "<em>Good morning sweetie pie. There is some of your favorite cereal in the counter if you're hungry"<em> she took a sip of her coffee and asked her eldest son "_So, what are your plans for the day Coop?"_ Coop walked up to her and hugged her gently, while letting her go he said "_I wanted all four of us to go to dinner tonight. My treat. How about it?"_ and looked at both Blaine and his mother. "_Ah, honey, I'm sorry but your father and I have to go to Indiana for a convention. Probably be out all weekend."_ Blaine sighed and Cooper understood his little brother's frustration since this type of law-related conventions his parents went to were a life longing issue, since Cooper was a toddler, to be exact. "_How about taking Blainey out for dinner with his…"_ she hesitated, not used to saying the following words, "_boyfriend?"_ Blaine looked up at his mother, half surprised, half amused and choked out an "_Uh. Yeah, sure. We can go to that new Italian place in Cider Falls street. I'll tell Kurt when I get to school."_ Cooper nodded at his brother's response and said "_I'll meet you there at 7."_ He kissed his mother goodbye and punched his brother's arm playfully and left for his usual mile run.

"_Blaaaaaineeeee. But we already had plans today, remember?"_ Kurt whined to his boyfriend, tugging on his sleeve like a spoiled 7 year old boy, he just told him about dinner plans while eating lunch in the school cafeteria. Blaine couldn't say no to being with Cooper, he had not seen him since he surprised him at practice and he was leaving on Sunday morning. "_Come on baby. You'll get to know him better"_ Blaine said to him. Kurt huffed in disappointment "_You know, it's a bad thing to judge a book by his cover. Who knows, you may even be fond of him"_ Blaine explained, now looking straight into Kurt's eyes, trying to use the usual puppy eyes he knew Kurt couldn't resist. The taller boy rolled his eyes when Blaine tried to persuade him and sighed "_Sure sure. But on one condition," _Kurt replied to Blaine, who was jumping on his spot in excitement "_I get to bring my support group. And if he tries to use any sleazy innuendo I'll leave early"_ he pointed at Blaine, giving him a stern look. "_No problem babe. Anything you want."_ Blaine said and kissed him. "_Besides, you have to get used to him. He's gonna be your future brother-in-law, you know?" _Blaine said, winking his eye at Kurt. He took him by the hand and headed out the room and on to the next class.

Blaine was waiting for Kurt to pick him up at home for dinner. Kurt texted him half an hour ago telling him he was going to pick up Rachel and then he was going to pick him up, since Mercedes cancelled on them, something related to Sam "_Well, that's not normal at all"_ Blaine thought to himself, while he paced, waiting for his boyfriend. A couple of minutes passed and he heard Kurt's car on his driveway. He took one last look in the mirror and ran out the door. He sat next on the passenger's seat and greeted his boyfriend with a soft kiss. He looked back at Rachel, who was sitting in the back seat, looking incredibly uncomfortable. "_Um, Rachel, are you feeling ok?"_ Blaine asked his friend. "_I am. I just"_ she looked out the window and back at Blaine "_I shouldn't have come. I don't think Finn will be comfortable with me going out with you guys." _Blaine looked back at her again and placed a hand on her knee, trying to comfort her. Kurt looked at Rachel from the rear-view mirror and sighed "_Seriously. You have been out with us multiple times. He doesn't need to worry about anything, you need to stop thinking about Finn and just have fun by yourself, it's not like we're throwing a guy at you."_ Blaine took a deep breath when Kurt mentioned this, because he had noticed Cooper took an interest in Rachel when he picked him up at school the other day.  
>They got to the restaurant and Kurt parked on a spot close to the front entrance. It was 7:10pm and Blaine couldn't see Cooper's Mustang parked in the lot. He decided to text him, see where he was. Besides, he needed to warn Cooper again about his manners around Kurt, and now, Rachel. He reached for the inside pocket of his jacket and didn't find his phone there. He padded the back pocket of his jeans but didn't feel anything. "<em>Kurt. Mind calling me? I can't find my phone"<em> Blaine told his boyfriend, while he searched on the seat and under it. "_Ok, dialing,"_ Kurt said. All three of them were as quiet as they could be but Blaine wasn't able to hear his phone inside the car. "_Shit"_ he muttered "_I think I left it in my desk."_ Kurt looked at Blaine and said "_That's fine; we can go back quickly and pick it up. Rachel can get the table for 4 and we'll be back in a jiffy. Ok?"_ Blaine looked back at Rachel with his puppy eyes, trying to get her to stay. He knew her too well to know she wouldn't be ok with this. But, as what usually happens when he does this, Rachel reluctantly said "_Oh, Blaine. Sure. I'll wait. Just, call me when you are coming back, ok?"_ Both Blaine and Kurt nodded and Rachel got down from the car and into the restaurant. She waved goodbye as Kurt started driving towards Westerville. A couple of minutes into the drive Kurt heard Blaine mutter "_shit"_ and Kurt looked at him with the corner of his eye and asked "_Baby, what's wrong?"_ Blaine closed his eyes and pressed his hand against his forehead and said "_I left her alone with Cooper."_


	3. A Non Date

Cooper got to the restaurant just 5 minutes later after Kurt and Blaine left. He didn't have time to go back home and change, so he'd have to stay on the business suit he already had on. He went into the restaurant and scanned the room, trying to find his little brother sitting somewhere. He couldn't find him but he did notice a little brunette girl sitting alone in a table, chewing on a stick of bread. "_That's that Rachel girl"_ he thought, he wanted to approach her but he made a promise "_a hard promise indeed,"_ to his little brother not to flirt with the girl. He was about to walk out when Rachel spotted him and called his name: "_Shit, even her voice is as sexy as she looks."_ He turned around and walked to the table

"_You are Blaine's brother, Cooper. Right?"_ she asked him.  
><em>"Wait. You're way prettier than I remember, Kurt..."<br>"Oh... Mmmm. Thank you, I guess"_ the brunette girl said, looking slightly blushed.  
><em>"I'm Cooper Anderson; I'm the better looking brother. Now, where is that hobbit of mine?"<br>_It took Rachel a couple of seconds to get a straight though in her head and said "_I'm Rachel Berry. Ah, he left his phone back at your house. So, they're gonna be here in about 15 minutes. They asked me to get the table."  
><em>He couldn't stop staring at her eyes; he was a bit mesmerized by them. He regained his speech_ "Oh. Well good. Rachel Berry. I wasn't aware he was setting me up on the date. I don't need that much help, you know?"_ he gave directed a slight wink her way.  
>She hesitated for a second and said "<em>Date...? I'm sorry, this is not a date. I have a boyfriend."<br>"Oh, rats."_ he said, sounding rather annoyed and disappointed "_I should have noticed, but I thought that was a promise ring or something"_ he pointed at her ring finger. "_Certainly not what an engagement ring would look like."_  
>Rachel looked clearly offended and strongly answered "<em>I think it's very rude of you to mention that. I am getting married and the price of the ring is not important!"<br>_Cooper was taken aback by her response; he didn't think this girl was that feisty._ "Wow, touched a soft spot there, sorry"_ he excused himself.  
>Rachel jumped in her seat and pulled up her phone from her bag. She scrolled through whatever she was seeing and put the phone away. <em>"They're going to be late. Flat tire, apparently"<em> she told Cooper, trying not to look directly at him. "_Kurt said we should just order and they'll try to get here as soon as possible."_ Cooper jumped as well, he had not noticed he put his phone on vibrate and took it from his pocket; he looked at a text from his little brother that read "_Might as well not try to do something stupid Cooper. I mean it."_ He tried to ignore it, but he knew his brother had his best intention in mind, and, it seemed, Rachel's as well.  
><em> "Anyway. What would you be having, honey"<em> he said, looking back at the brunette. She was staring intently at the menu, seemed like she was trying to ignore him, so he gave it his best shot and tried to get her attention, just as he normally would; "_Well. Cat got your tongue before I did."_ He saw her blush, clearly confirming that she was actually aware he was still there, but still ignored the comment. She cleared her throat and said "_Sorry, it takes me a while to decide."_ He looked up from the menu and he was able to fully appreciate her, she had placed her menu down on the table and was looking nervously around. He could not help himself and said "_Take your time princess, I can look at you all day"_ and he laid back into his chair and kept staring at her. _  
><em>It took a couple of minutes but she finally spoke "_I'm going to have Iced Tea and Pasta al Pesto."_ Funny thing, he was actually thinking about getting the same thing. He let her know that exact thing by giving the waiter the menu and said "_good choice,_ _I'd have what she's having."_ He wasn't sure about having tea, this whole situation was creating a great amount of angst in him, so he decided to cool off and stopped the waiter "c_an we have a bottle of your best white wine; thanks."_ The girl sitting across from him look slightly uncomfortable as the waiter left and said "_I don't think I should drink; I'm not really used to drink a lot."_  
>Cooper leaned against the table and remembered that once he heard Blaine mention her name, almost over a year ago.<em> "Wait, you're Rachel,"<em> he said, while pointing at her. She looked puzzled and answered _"Yes, that's my name"_ as she backed off from the table, like Cooper was about to pounce on her. Then, he connected the dots: "_Oooh, I know who you are"_ he said as he laughed and leaned back onto his chair. She blushed again (_what's with this girl and all the blushing?)_ and she curiously asked him "_What's that supposed to mean?"_ He started to reminisce what his little brother told him: "_last year he called me because he had gotten a major hangover and made out with a Rachel girl. YOU are that Rachel, aren't you?"_ Cooper raised one eyebrow and crossed his hands, not leaving his spot. She wasn't able to say a word and blushed even more.

He started probing her even more, trying to get her innocent façade "_Interesting. So you made my baby bro doubt his sexuality"_ he said as he scanned her whole frame "_I can see where he's coming from."_ He sees she's about to react, and she strongly says "_We were both drunk, we we're playing spin the bottle and... that doesn't count…"_ He laughed at this statement. Both Rachel and Cooper stay quiet for a second and Cooper takes out his phone to check some things, Rachel gets impatient because of this and asks "_So... Cooper, what do you do for a living?"_ Cooper puts his phone away and leans against the table again, sipping a bit of his wine and answers "_I'm a doctor, pediatrician."_ He sees that Rachel is still nervous and goes through his usual playbook and decides to pour a glass of wine for Rachel. He takes a big gulp of his glass and pours himself some more. "_Oh... We all thought you were an architect or something along that line"_ she continues, while taking a sip of her wine. Cooper is pleasantly surprised by this statement: "_Who is all? You have been talking about me?"_ She quickly retorts his advance and says "_You did show up in our closed rehearsal and well, everyone wanted to know about you."_

He grins at her and Cooper raises his glass and says "_Here's to our not really a date,"_ she retorts with "_It's not"_ and they both take a sip of wine at the same time. He notices that she is very quiet and tries to break the ice "_Are you ok, sweetheart?"_ She coughs, clearly uncomfortable and says "_I'm fine; I'm not used to wine. I… I think I should stop, Kurt and Blaine might be here any minute now"_ Cooper senses his phone vibrating and pulls it out, and then looks back at Rachel "_Well, seems that is not gonna happen."_ She gives him a puzzled look and he shows her a text from Blaine, saying they are on their way to Burt's tire shop, she sighs and says "_Oh no! Kurt promised… and I told Finn I was out with them."_ He is slightly puzzled at her reaction, besides, he didn't remember hearing that name before. "_Finn?"_ he asked. "_My boyfriend, Kurt's step-brother"_ Cooper laughs, he clearly forgot Blaine mentioned that Kurt had a sibling. "_Oh, that guy that looks like a tree," _"_He does not"_ she answers, visibly upset. Cooper laughs it off, but Rachel does not even smile. They both finish eating and soon enough, he looks up at Rachel and asks her "_Are you in for dessert honey? We can split a chocolate soufflé." _She nods her head and gives a tiny smile at him. Cooper orders the soufflé and it comes to the table rather quickly, he notices that Rachel isn't even looking at him, he is not used to this, and he always got girls' attention everywhere he went. "_You know"_ he looks up at Rachel and grabs one of the cherries on top of the dessert "_I can tie the stem of this cherry with my tongue. You ever tried that?"_ he placed the cherry inside his mouth and maneuvers it until he gets it out and shows Rachel the knot he managed to create. She blushes and tries to come up with a response, instead of creating the reaction he wanted; he just made her feel more uncomfortable. "_Shit, what the hell am I doing? She's just a kid"_ he thinks to himself, and takes a spoon full of the dessert.

Cooper noticed that the tension on the table had risen up incredibly and both of them decided to take a gulp of what was left of the wine. He notices that Rachel has a bit of chocolate sauce near her upper lip, which he finds incredibly cute, and he closes in on her, pointing at her mouth "_Umm, you got a little something. Right there" _ she tries to clean herself with a napkin but fails, so he touches her upper lip with his thumb and cleans it off for her, licking his finger afterwards. She gives a low squeal mixed with a sigh and blushes "_Thank you."_

Once they're done they start walking up the front door and he asks her "_so, I guess you need a ride back to Lima?"_ She fumbles with her purse looking for her phone "_I can call my dads"_ she says as she opens her phone, but seconds after she closes it "_Oh, no, wait, they are not home."_ "_Guess you are stuck with me now" _he says as he opens the restaurant door for her and they almost stumble with a couple on their way in. Rachel looks up to apologize and her eyes open further, totally shocked "_Burt… Carole."_ They look at her and back to Cooper and smile "_Nice to see you Rachel"_ the woman, Carole, he notes, tells Rachel. Cooper backs up and looks at Rachel, who is almost incredibly pale now. "_I'm Cooper"_ he extends his hand to Burt and shakes it strongly. Rachel quickly spits out "_This is… Mmm. Blaine's brother. We were supposed to be out with Blaine and Kurt and then they had a flat tire, so we stayed and had dinner anyway. Such a waste not to, right?"_ she laughs nervously. Burt hesitates and says "_Ah, yeah_, _Kurt called and told me about it. Anyways"_ he nodded inside "_nice to see you, Rachel."_ The couple heads inside and Cooper takes Rachel out and guides her to his car; all of the sudden she starts crying. He looks back at her, surprised at her reaction "_Um. Are you ok Rachel?"_ "_No"_ she sobs "_I just. They are Kurt and Finn's parents…"_ Cooper starts to connect the dots "_Oh, wait. Fred, your boyfriend"_ but he still doesn't understand why she turned into a fountain. "_Finn, yes, they just saw me with someone else, this is so wrong. They will misunderstand"_ she starts crying even louder now. Cooper hesitates a second and thinks about what he'll say next. He's not used to girls crying so much "_Don't let this bother you, Rachel. You explained this to them, Kurt probably will too."_ He tries to comfort her and pads her back "_it's just a friendly dinner"_ he continues and hugs her awkwardly. "_You don't know Finn, he'll take it the wrong way"_ she sobs but the tears start to fade. "_Well"_ he lets her go "_if you have any problems either me or Blainers can fix this for you. He isn't that uptight for an 18 year old, is he?"_ Cooper sighs and thinks "_well, I'd probably keep my guard up to if I had someone like her."_ She interrupts this thought "_and we just had a huge fight the other day…"_ He is confused now, why did she open up to him all of the sudden, she barely knows him. He opens the passenger door for her and she sits down, but continues to sob "_I'm sorry for crying so much. Can you just take me home Cooper, please?"_ He liked the way his name rolled out of her lips, innocently but yet a bit seductive, even if she didn't notice she had done it. "_Sure, that's what I'm here for"_ he says as he goes around to the drivers' side and gets inside. He starts driving and all he can hear are Rachel's light sobs, which depresses him a little. He couldn't stand seeing her like this, even if he had known her for mere hours. He turns on the radio to a random station, see if maybe he can get a different reaction from her. A Britney Spears song comes on and Cooper thinks "_I am so gonna make a fool out of myself right now"_ and starts singing along to the song in a very feminine way, mocking Britney's dance moves and looking back at Rachel from time to time, trying to get her attention. She vaguely looks at Cooper with the corner of her eye and sees what he's doing, a shy smile growing on her face. He notices her reaction and starts singing louder; he poker her in her side and says "_Come on, I know you know this song"_ and turns up the volume of the radio and continues singing along, with a goofy grin. Finally, she laughs and starts singing with him; he sighs in relief. He looks at her for a second and, even though she had tear tracks running down her face, he notices how beautiful she looks when she smiles.

Rachel notices that they are already on her street and motions Cooper to her house. He parks his car in front and turns the car off and gets off to go around and open the door for her; she smiles and blushes a little at this gesture and, even if she is a little tipsy, she gracefully slides herself out of the car. Cooper smiles back and walks her to the steps up her house, "_So, this was the best non date I ever had Ms. Berry. We should do this again sometime."_ "_Thanks so much for bringing me here and, I'm sorry, for the crying, you know."_ He pats her on the back softly and puts his hands in his pockets; he leans into Rachel and gives her a peck in her cheek, a bit too close to the edge of her mouth "_Have a good night. And remember, it will all be alright, ok?"_ She looks down "_I hope so"_ and looks back at him "_I actually had a great time with you, Cooper."_ He smiles, happy that he said his name again. "_I did too, of course, I had great company"_ and winks as he closes in and hugs her tightly now.

Cooper takes a step back and rubs her shoulders gently. The only thing he wants to do now is kiss her, but he knows how much shit it can get him and her into; Blaine's voice started ringing in his head, warning him about what he was about to do, but decides to disregard it "_the hell, what he doesn't know won't hurt him."_ He leans over her and takes her face in his hands and kisses her softly, tasting, what seems to be, blueberry lip gloss; both of them take a step back, Cooper surprised by how good it had felt. He takes a step forward to her again and kisses her, a bit more passionately before, noticing also that she is kissing him back; but now Blaine's voice is basically screaming in his head and it does not help at all. He lets her go softly, Rachel looking back at Cooper, still surprised, her hand over her mouth, grazing her lips. He can't think straight right now but manages to come up with a few parting words as he starts walking to his car "_well, um, I… I have to head off. Umm, take care, beautiful." _

He has mixed feelings about what just happened a few moments ago. In just those few seconds he had her close to him he learned to love her taste; he took in the sweet smell of her blueberry perfume; but he knew that it wasn't the right thing to do. "_What about Blaine? What about her stupid, jerk boyfriend? Besides, she's jailbait idiot!"_ he thought to himself, but he wanted to do it again and again. He looked back at her house, but she had already gone in; he sighed and got into his car and started driving in direction to Westerville, he couldn't stop thinking about Rachel. He hit his forehead with the palm of his hand and said "_What the hell did I do?"_


	4. Intoxicated

Authors' note: Hi! Thanks for reading our fanfic, we appreciate all the visits we've been getting. =D

From here on the rest of it will include other members of ND as well as Rachel's POV.

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She didn't really want to go out that night, but Kurt insisted so much that in the end she decided to go, Finn was upset that she changed their plans for the night, but it had been a while since she went out with Mercedes, Kurt and Blaine. Ever since Blaine and Kurt started to go out it was bound to happen that the former Lead Warbler would be there, with her best friend, and they would have to become friends or tolerate each other. Fortunately for her Blaine was a talented performer, her perfect partner and the chemistry they had when they sang together overlapped with the one they had as friends because he loved Kurt so much that, and Rachel knew this, he took the time to get to know her even with all her paranoia and dramatic antics.

"Not enough time with his little brother" Kurt texted her and when she realized that Cooper was the real reason they were going out she blushed and for some reason it seemed to make her heart race and send her mind into a frenzy of "what am I going to wear?"

None of them had met him before; not even Kurt and they were all expecting him to be an older version of Blaine. Yes, he was a handsome man, as much as his little brother was, if not more, but while Blaine usually was modest, cool, and calm and collected, Cooper was brazen, confident, cocky and presumptuous. Like two sides of the same coin; forged around the same time, but the pressure created two different and yet similar sides.

That much was clear for all of them after they saw them together, when the older Anderson snuck in the New Directions closed rehearsal; in a matter of minutes he managed to make Tina, Mercedes and Quinn giggle while Rachel blushed and looked away after he winked at them and smiled. On the other side of the stage the boys looked at him apprehensively, they all had their insecurities when Blaine was around, but an older and straight Anderson was more than they wanted to deal with. Especially her fiancé, Finn Hudson, older brother to Kurt and male lead of New Directions until Blaine showed up; he couldn't blame the former Dalton Academy student for being who he was, he liked him and he made his brother happy, but with Rachel it was different; they had had enough arguments about the way she looked at Blaine when he performed. She tried not to look at Blaine with dreamy eyes, but it was impossible; they were best friends, he was ridiculously talented and she had a weakness for talented men. No matter that he was gay or that he was dating Kurt… Finn always had the time to let her know he didn't like the way she leaned over and hugged him when they sang. And so there they were now, dealing with their relationship strains, the impending marriage and the fact that she went out with Blaine and Kurt more than Finn wanted her to.

This was the reason for their latest fight and in the end she cried and apologized and had to promise Finn she would call him as soon as she got back and that she would text him if anything happened. Finn was a man of few words, but they had been dating for enough time for her to know that he wasn't happy about her "night out with the boys", because this time it wasn't only Blaine and Kurt; Blaine's older brother was supposed to join them.

She was sure he saw her blush when Cooper winked at them from the seats; because he immediately strolled over to where she was and kissed her lightly on the lips, she saw Finn's eyes directed at him when he sat down to wait for Blaine and Kurt, but Cooper was smiling right back at her and paid no attention to Finn's glare.

Burt and Carole entering the restaurant, polite and calm on the outside but their eyes revealed their shock at seeing her walking next to a strange handsome, older man who was helping her put on her coat and smiling like if they were intimate, the same man who extended his hand and greeted them naturally while holding her around the waist, insinuating more than had really happened during their "non date"; her hasty explanation and the obvious fact that she had been drinking, Burt's abrupt goodbye and the feeling that both his and his wife's eyes followed them until they were out of sight.

All this went through her mind as she leaned her back in the door, hearing his footsteps then the car start and leave, holding her purse tightly in her left hand, shaking from head to toe, tears flowing from her closed eyes and her right hand softly touching her lips, she felt intoxicated by his kiss; a kiss that seemed to linger on her like the smell of his cologne.

Suddenly her phone vibrated breaking the spell of Cooper's presence.

The text message icon appeared on the screen as she unlocked the phone, a message from Finn she decided to ignore.


	5. Drama Queen

"What the hell is wrong with Rachel?" Blaine thought. He noticed she acted strange since they arrived basically at the same time Friday morning; they both met at the parking lot but when she saw him she had run off inside. Hours later, they met at the door when they had Advanced Calculus, but instead of sitting next to him, like they usually would, she quickly went in and sat next to Lauren Zizes, who stared at her strangely when she stumbled next to her.

After the last period was done, he approached his boyfriend, who was just coming out of his French class.

"Have you noticed that Rachel has been acting really strange today?"

"How is THAT not normal, Blaine?" Kurt snorted. Blaine nodded, thinking Kurt had a point; she is McKinley's drama queen after all.

They both headed, hand in hand, to the Auditorium, since Mr. Schue needed them to have extra practice now that Nationals was just weeks away. The rest of the club was already inside once the couple entered the room; Mr. Schue was already talking about a set list and the club sat, most of them not paying attention to him. Kurt took an empty seat next to Rachel and Blaine sat next his boyfriend.

"What did we miss?" Kurt whispered to her, Rachel began to answer as softly as she could but then noticed that Blaine was leaning in to take a listen as well. Kurt noticed she got pale and stood up and quickly ran out of the Auditorium. Everyone turned around to look once she closed the door with a big thud and began whispering to each other in wonderment.

"Oh God!" Santana said, as loudly as she could "Let her storm out, we'll have one less hobbit in the room."

Everyone started to stay quiet and Finn, realizing what had happened to his girlfriend, ran off to find her. Blaine leaned to Kurt and whispered "Now, do you think THAT was normal?"

Puck would usually wander around the halls of McKinley High when he was bored at Glee club, a thing Mr. Schue was already getting used to. He was walking past a hall, bouncing a basketball in one hand and he ran into his old girlfriend, Lauren Zizes, who was standing outside the girls' bathroom.

"So, you waiting for me, baby?" he said to Lauren as he leaned in on her. She snorted.

"You wish Puckerman; the Zizes is off limits for you. I'm just out here cause Berry won't stop yapping in there" Noah looked puzzled and pressed his ear against the door and heard Rachel crying, worse than he ever heard her.

He stepped back and hesitated for a second, deciding to go in or not. He started to walk back to where he came from and Lauren grabbed him by his shoulder and pulled him against the locker.

"Whoa, hey there Puckerman. Where are you going? You…" she grabbed him and made him face the bathroom door "are going to get your little Jewish princess outta there."

"Hey, why me?" he retorted "Why don't you go there and do it yourself? You're a girl, last time I checked." Lauren sighed, annoyed at his comment.

"I am, you jackass. I just can't understand her blabbing and she annoys the living crap out of me" she pushed him closer to the door and said "go on, besides, you are both Jewish, you understand each other." And before he could even protest she pushed him inside, almost falling face down on the floor.

Rachel squealed and jumped in surprise "Noah! What?" she cleaned her face with a tissue "why are you here?"

Puck tried to look cool, but after being thrown into the bathroom by Lauren it seemed a little bit hard to do, still he ignored the weird feeling he always had when Zizes was around and approached Rachel.

"Zizes told me you were crying… again. What's going on? You can tell anything to the Puckster." He looked directly at her and saw her eyes, redder than ever before and her sad look. "Shit! What did Hudson do this time? Do I have to go kick his ass?"

"No. There's nothing out of the ordinary. You know how things are, don't you?"

"Yeah, the wedding of the year, I even have a suit picked up…" she starts crying again. "What the…? What did I do?"

"If I tell you, do you promise not to tell?"

"Cross my Jewish heart."

"I'm not sure about the wedding anymore… we had a huge fight the other day…"

"Another? What did you do to my boy Finn?"

"I didn't do anything! He was the one who started it! Pushing me about all the solos I sing with Blaine and me going out with Kurt and Mercedes."

"He lacks the Puckasaurus confidence." He smirked and she scoffed at him. "What…?" Puck looked at her, she was very sad, he'd teased her enough to know what her sad face looked like, but there was something else there. "What happened? Seriously, did he cheat on you?"

"He didn't cheat on me." Puck realized the tone she used in HE and ME and slowly got to the conclusion.

"You cheated on him? Is Jesse back in town?" he approached her and she backed a step.

"No, no yet."

"Then who was it?" she didn't answer and this frustrated him even more. "Rachel! What did you do…?"

"I didn't do anything! That's what's wrong! I should've said no or push him back or something but I didn't do any of those things!" she started to cry again and Puck sighed in frustration until it an idea formed in his head. "I liked it!"

"It was hobbits brother, wasn't it?"

"How…"

"They're my boys and also none of them would've kissed you knowing you're with Finn."

"You did" she remarked with a slight exasperated tone. "What about Quinn and then me."

"That's different! Even if you want to, Berry, you are engaged now and that's a deal breaker for Puckzilla." He joked but sounded a little bit embarrassed. "I don't like him. He was checking you girls out and this is my territory. Creep. "

"Territory? All of Lima is your territory! And how dating an entire Sorority makes you not a creep?"

"Woa… those girls wanted the Lion King Puck-fasa and who am I to say no?"

"Whatever…" she opened the faucet and doused her face with a little water.

"Look, Rachel, I'm not usually the one that gives good advice, but I think you need to let this go and if you are not sure about tying the knot with Hudson then don't do it; what happened with all the stuff you have in your planner and all the things you want to do?"

"You read my planner!"

"Well, duh… you left me alone in your room and I was bored…"

"That was months and months ago."

"It doesn't mean I don't remember… I like to get to know my girls… usually just physically, but you… mmm…well, you… are different… I mean…you were such a prude I needed something else to distract my mind with."

"Noah…" she touched his arm and smiled sadly.

"Yeah, well, going back to business… Stay alone for a while, Berry. You need it and we both know Finn needs to think about this too… I don't know what's with the whole marriage thing. I'd rather let the world enjoy me for a while longer. Clean yourself again and go back before Santana steals all your solos." She walks to the door, but before leaving she looks back at him.

"What would you if Quinn was the one messing with your feelings?"

Puck just stayed there, looking at the door and holding his breath because the beautiful blonde mother of his child was always messing with his feelings.

Santana didn't know why Rachel stormed out and didn't care, but she needed to go to the bathroom and taking advantage of her dramatic scene she left the auditorium and walked as fast as she could towards the bathroom and got inside a stall.

But then the door opened and she heard the small but frantic steps she knew belonged to the ever dramatic and annoying Rachel Berry. What was with this girl and her constant need for drama? She was about to open the door and tell her to go cry somewhere else when she heard her say Puck's name. This was going to be interesting…

She could hardly believe what she had heard! Rachel cheating on Finn and with Blaine's older brother… Life was even better than the novelas her mother watched.

She stayed a few minutes after she heard Puck leave and actually felt bad for the last comment that Rachel threw at him. They used to be involved but Santana always knew that Puck's feelings for Quinn would never go away; they all knew this and so this made her feel angry towards Rachel for using that as a weapon when he was actually trying to be nice.

After checking her make up in the mirror she left the bathroom and ran into her girlfriend Brittany and a very annoyed Lauren Zizes that just wanted to get inside the bathroom.

"You done, Lima Heights?"

"Yes, that's why I'm leaving, Zizes."

"Is Berry still crying inside?"

"No, she left."

"It seems Puckerman did something good for a change… I thought Berry was preggo and shivered at the thought of a baby Frankenteen"

"Did you know that you need to like have sex so there can be a baby? Maybe that's why we haven't seen their babies yet…" Brittany said absentmindedly.

"What are you talking about, you ditz?" Lauren said and Santana gave her a very angry look.

"I heard Finn tell Sam that there's no sex… so there can't a baby, right?"

Lauren and Santana looked at each other and it seemed they both understood something.

"Well, Puffy-Pyramid-Nipples doesn't know how to do the deed and I know it firsthand so it's no wonder she cheated on him… She should've listened to me."

"Berry cheated on Hudson?" Lauren stopped and held the door before going inside the bathroom. "Well, I can't say I didn't see it coming… with the ultimatum he gave her I wouldn't really want to marry him."

"What ultimatum?" Santana stopped and looked back at Lauren while holding Brittany around the waist.

"You didn't know? He cornered her in front of her locker and all. That boy is nuts. And she's so messed up she agreed under the pressure. I would never understand her… "

"Neither do I" Brittany said. "She's so talented even Lord Tubbinton asked me to invite her to Fondue for Two before she gets too famous and has no time to talk with him."

Santana and Brittany walked back to the auditorium, they were already singing so they decided not to interrupt them, they sat down and watched them practice. Rachel was already there and she looked sad, her eyes were baggy and she was completely losing the count of the steps. Santana wondered why she was actually starting to worry about her and then she looked at Finn. Nobody was keen on their wedding, but something as serious as an ultimatum… a threat? She wasn't sure the rest of the Glee club knew about this.

She leaned over to Brittany and kissed her deeply before saying: "I'm sorry if I ever made you feel like you need to say yes just because that's what I wanted…"


	6. The Disney Prince

_Author's Note: Well, after the whole "Big Brother" fuzz died down, I decided to post another fic. And I gotta say, I used the title before it actually aired on TV, but its still very apropo._

Mr. Schue called everybody up and decided that they should stop the dancing, mostly because Rachel was stumbling around and couldn t get a hold of herself. Rachel, Blaine, I know you have a song prepared. How about it? the teacher told them, motioning everyone else off the stage. Rachel was still a little hesitant about being alone with Blaine, she hadn t told him what happened the other night with his older brother, but she decided just to let go and let out her emotions while singing, as she would usually do. Blaine decided to give Brad a break and took over piano duties for the song and began playing the keys to a familiar Beatles song. Rachel took a deep breath and began to sing: I've just seen a face,  
>I can't forget the time or place where we just met, he's just the boy for me<p>

She closed her eyes and continued to sing, she was used to see Finn s face when she was trying to go to her happy place, but this time all she could remember was Cooper s smile when he first sat at the table during dinner. I have never known The like of this, I've been alone And I have missed things and kept out of sight But other boys were never quite like this

She opened her eyes and realized she was actually smiling; a smile she had never felt in her face before and all because of Cooper. She started to walk around the stage singing her lungs out and turn around to the piano to sing along with Blaine, who looked at her Why is she giddy all of the sudden? he wondered, but continued to the last verse of the song:

I've just seen a face I can t forget the time or place And we'd just met, she's just the girl for me And I want all the world to see we've met Na na na na na na

Everyone stood up from their seats in the Auditorium and clapped excitedly, Kurt almost jumping up and down. Rachel looked back at Blaine and said great job Blaine, we have Nationals in the bag! and raised her hand at him, waiting for a high-five. Blaine looked at her, one eyebrow raised and returned it, still wondering what bug had bit her today.

Mr Schuester called Finn and Puck back to help him get the biggest props out of the stage and headed out to the choir room. Both Santana and Brittany walked up to the stage where Rachel sat on the piano bench with Blaine, still the biggest smile gracing her face.

Congratulations hobbits, both managed to make a decent version of that song Santana told them.

Well, I appreciate your gesture, I guess Blaine replied.

And Berry, if I hadn t known better I d say you have a liking for them Anderson boys, don t you? Rachel shoot up a look back at both Cheerios.

Ah, what? I... I don t understand what you mean. she rapidly murmured.

So, who would you say is the best kisser? Is Finn that bad? Brittany said and Santana laughed at the questions.

Come on Britt, you know that I m the same guy Rachel kissed at her party. Besides, that was ages ago, Blaine had a puzzled look on his face.

Silly Blainers, I know that. the blonde cheerleader looked taken aback. I meant the other one, the tall one that looks like a Disney prince.

Rache? Is she? Blaine looked back at Rachel, who had her mouth wide open in shock. He looked back at the cheerleaders and asked Are you talking about Cooper?

But now Rachel couldn t come up with any words, she just jumped out of the seat and looked back at him and said Blaine. I m... I m so sorry. I have to go and tears started to fill her eyes and decided to run away from Blaine. A few steps away from the piano, Kurt saw everything happening but couldn t catch anything that they were saying, he just saw his best friend run away from the stage, again in tears. He looked back at Blaine and he mouthed to him What? but Blaine was speechless. Kurt motioned to his boyfriend that he was going to look out for her and ran off stage to follow her.

Rachel Barbra Berry, come back here he yelled at her across the hallway. She suddenly stopped at the exit door and waited for Kurt to catch up with her, still sobbing lightly. He grabbed her arm and turned her to face him Are you ok, sweetie? What s wrong? I saw you ran away when you were with Blaine and... but the brunette stopped him

Kurt, I just can t. Not right now, she said, in between sobs come pick me up tomorrow morning and I ll explain.

She let go from her friend s grip and walked to her car, Kurt saw her leave the school and sighed, he was worried about her, especially since the whole engagement situation.

Kurt decided to go and check back on his boyfriend and turned around to go back to the Auditorium, when he bumped into him.

Blaine, baby. What happened with Rachel? he asked his boyfriend, but suddenly began to worry since Blaine had a strained look on his face, not normal to his beautiful features. Are you ok? You look like you may punch something Kurt said, making Blaine laugh sourly.

Yeah, maybe I might. Not something, but someone. Kurt could see Blaine was upset, his hands curled up into fists, the knuckles white from the strain. Blaine took a deep breath and look back at Kurt s eyes and said I am sorry, sweetheart. I have to go. I need to have a serious talk with my brother and kissed him lightly on the lips and headed off outside through the same door Rachel left the school. Kurt stared both at the door that now closed and the place that Blaine was just standing on, completely dumbfounded by the situation.


	7. Brother Talk

Author's note: Hey guys! Thanks so much for reading our crazy Anderson story… There is more to come. Feel free to comment and share if you like it. :D

"I can't believe he would do this? Why would he go mess up with Rachel?" Blaine thought to himself as he entered the Anderson driveway, "Quinn would've been a safer choice... Wait? What am I saying?" He walked inside his house, closing the front door very harshly, just making sure his dear brother noticed he was there and he was pissed. He placed his school bag on the nearest chair and called for Cooper, looking for him in the living room, then checking on the kitchen. Just as he was taking a couple of steps upstairs he heard something coming from the basement and Blaine changed his route. He opened the door to the basement and saw the light turned on and heard the noise clearly now, punching and grunting, both coming from his elder brother; both Anderson boys were glad their dad decided to build a small gym downstairs, after the Sadie Hawkins incident, both his dad and Cooper took upon themselves to have a place that Blaine could cool off and learn to defend himself.

His brother was giving a good beating to the old punching bag hanging from the ceiling in a corner of the room, he had some headphones on and, from what Blaine is able to see, he'd been down here for almost an hour or so, since he was sweating profusely. Blaine carefully tapped on Cooper's shoulder and his brother jumped in surprise "I was not expecting anyone to come home for a couple of hours" Cooper said as he took his headphones off "B, are you ok? You look pissed at something. Is it that Sebastian guy again? Do I have to go kick his ass?" Blaine laughed at his brother's reaction, after the whole slushie in the eye incident Cooper had been on edge because of that jerk that dared to hurt his baby brother. "I'm ok, I actually, I wanted to talk to you Coop" Blaine said as he stood behind the bag and held it for Cooper and motioned him to go on. The eldest Anderson stood back and began hitting the bag as hard as he could and Blaine began choosing his words carefully but he noticed his brother was frustrated as well, he could feel the anger being let out in every punch he took and Cooper's face was easy to read as well. He decided to let the Rachel thing slide for a moment and dared to ask "Are YOU ok Coop?" His brother suddenly stopped and stepped back for a second "I'm fine, I haven't gotten laid in a while, need to release some steam, you know?" and began punching the bag again "Now, hold this still B" Blaine didn't need to look at him to notice that tone of voice he used wasn't the same carefree Cooper he knew "Dude, I know there is something bugging you, now, c'mon and tell me" Blaine retorted, and for a second there his brother looked down at the ground and then back at his brother, "I can't keep one from you, can't I?" he laughed and began punching away, now harder than before.

Blaine had a bad feeling about this and decided to ask what was already lingering on his mind: "It's Rachel, isn't it?" he said as he let go of the bag. Coop gave one last punch and looked surprised at him "How did you" but the last words coming from his mouth were silenced by the bag that ricochet to his face and pushed him hard on the ground. Blaine grinned a bit and said "well, I can't say you don't deserve that after what I told you, Cooper James Anderson" and gave his brother his hand to help him stand up "You don't need to scold me, Blaine Declan Anderson; I already know what I did." Cooper walked to the bench next to the wall, sat down and grabbed a towel to clean himself off "I should have listened, I know. But there is something about that girl" Cooper replied as he looked up at his brother, who was standing just in front of him. "You know, I have dated my fair share of girls all through High School, college, and even now. But I" Cooper hesitated for a second "I never saw any future with any of them." Blaine sat down on the floor, still facing his brother, and this reminded him of the countless times Cooper would sit down and read a story to Blaine when they were younger.

Cooper looked straight at his little brother's eyes and sighed "I had... I have this silly fantasy, might be a little corny for my taste" he laughed but Blaine didn't move an inch, so Cooper continued "But, when I've had a few months with them, I would usually picture myself standing in an altar and I'd try to picture them walking towards me, all dressed in white, but it never happened, I'd just see myself standing there alone." Blaine was speechless; he never had seen his brother get that vulnerable. He was usually the guy he would see as his superhero, but now he was just a mere mortal as him and he understood him, he had days like this, before he met Kurt, when he wondered if he was ever going to have his happily-ever after.

He placed his hand on his brother's knee and squeezed it lightly, trying to give him a bit of strength to continue because, Blaine also had this feeling of how this story will end, and it seems that it did: "Now, every time I close my eyes I picture her. Walking towards me," and Cooper squeezed his eyes shut, resting his head against the wall behind him. "Rachel" Blaine finished "You see an entire future with Rachel and you have only kissed her once?" Cooper opened his eyes and stood up quickly "Ah, yeah, sure" and he started to walk off quickly towards the door "James" Blaine said, demanding his brother's attention; Cooper stopped on his tracks and tried to let the matter go by saying "Well, since when did you turn into our mom, Declan?" Blaine walked to him and faced him again "No, you are not gonna run away from this Coop. Answer me, did you kiss her only once?" Cooper looked at Blaine and gazed down to the floor, like a kid that had been caught stealing cookies from the cookie jar.

Blaine didn't need to ask more, his face said everything, everything Blaine told him not to do and he did. He dared to ask his older brother "What happened, don't miss a step Anderson." Cooper pushed himself against the wall and began telling the story of what happened last night: from the moment he got there until Rachel's house "her right hand was softly grabbing the lapel of my suit and her left hand was moving slowly upwards, like she was really into me and then I stopped, because of your annoying little voice screaming inside my head" he finished as he pointed to his brother; Blaine waited for his brother to finish and told him "Well, for starters" and punched him in the arm "that's for not listening to me from the beginning. And two..." he was going to punch him again but Cooper ran upstairs as fast as he could. Blaine followed his brother just about as he was going to the upper level of the house and said "wait, Coop, listen to me for a second." Cooper stopped on his tracks and looked down at Blaine, who was two steps below him: "Listen... You did freak me out a second there; I never heard you or known you acting this way. Rachel IS engaged Coop, nothing is going to change that, you need to back off, give her space, she is a troubled girl, believe me" he said as he looked up at his brother, who was not looking at Blaine now but was focusing on the main door, thinking about bolting.

"I know it might be painful, but if it's meant to be, it will happen soon enough… Just" Blaine stepped up next to him and grabbed his shoulder in a comforting manner "go back to Boston, focus on your work and it will go away." Cooper let go of his grasp and looked down at him and gave him a painful smile, Blaine continued: "I know it's gonna be hard. But, this time Coop, I'm the one that's gonna be here for you." Cooper gave his brother a quick smile and decided to say nothing, because all Blaine said was all he needed to hear. He headed upstairs and locked himself in his room; Blaine was still standing on the steps after his brother left, he went downstairs and looked for his phone on his bag and wrote a text to Kurt "Talk to Rachel, she really needs you." Blaine walked up the stairs and stood in front of Cooper's door, deciding to knock, but he needed to be alone, he needs to think things over. As painful as it might be, Rachel Berry might not be his best option.


	8. Coffee and Tears

There was no possible way to hide the fact she hadn't had much sleep that night, she missed her nightly beauty routine and her morning one too and also Kurt Hummel was her best friend, he knew her even better than she knew herself; she wasn't going to be able to tell him that she was fine and that what happened after rehearsal was just stress from the wedding.

The wedding she agreed on and now wasn't sure off. She heard Kurt park his car outside, after all this time she didn't need him to text her or ring the bell, she just stood up from the couch, opened the front door, ignored the flashback she had when she stepped outside and walked over to his car.

He looked at her while she turned around, opened the door and sat next to him.

"Good morning, Kurt!" Such an over enthusiastic tone, she thought and saw how his eyebrows arched up in disbelief.

"Morning, Rachel." He turned on the car and started driving. "I see someone forgot her beauty routine today…"

She smiled sadly and didn't answer, if they were going to talk about this then it would have to be over coffee and the new Lima Bean menu she worked so hard for them to update. It took her weeks of sending letters, writing suggestions and filling the suggestion box to the top before they actually paid attention to her and a few more weeks for them to understand that she wasn't going to stop her campaign for them to have at least 5 vegan dishes that "all vegans in Lima could enjoy."

Kurt knew she wasn't going to talk until they reached their destination so he started to talk about the rehearsal and the songs until they reached the Lima Bean.

They approached the counter and the waitress smiled at them. "The same as always, right?" Kurt nodded and said: "Yes, please. Also two orders of vegan French toast." The waitress took down the order. "Go sit down, there aren't many customers so I'll take your order to your table."

They sat down and talked about something irrelevant until the waitress approached them with their order. "Here it is; large chai for Ms. Berry; non fat-mocha for Mr. Hummel and two orders of French toast." She smiled to Rachel and said in a low voice: "They are not going to tell you, but your ideas were amazing, even people who are not vegan are ordering them." She winked and left.

Kurt smiled and Rachel giggled, a small amount of happiness was something she needed at the moment and she clung to it as she traced her name written on the cup. Then everything grew silent as her smile fade away and she drank a long sip from her large chai.

"Rachel, please; tell me what's going on and stop staring at your coffee." She coughed a little and looked at him, took a deep breath and decided that it was now or never.

"Something happened the other night… that wasn't supposed to happen. You left me at the restaurant and you were supposed to come back so I saved the table for four… and wait for you because you guys got the flat tire…"

"I know what happened to us, Rachel. Cut to the chase, what happened to you?"

"He kissed me."

"He what?" Kurt slammed his hand on the table and stared at her. Suddenly Blaine's voice came back to him "I left her alone with Cooper" and he sighed. It seemed that the irresistible quality wasn't something that only Blaine had. It was an Anderson thing.

"I didn't mean to, Kurt! It just happened!" her eyes filled with tears.

"But what about Finn? Did you think any of this through?"

"No. I was… he ordered wine…"

"Rachel! Not again! You promised me you wouldn't get drunk again. Not after kissing Blaine." His coffee almost fell from his hand; he quickly grabbed it and put it back on the table. The sound seemed to startle the person who was sitting at the sofa a few steps from them and she took of her headphone and listened.

"I know. I'm sorry!"

"There is something else you are not telling me, Ms. Berry." He sipped his coffee to try and regain some control. Yes, he loved Rachel to death, once they got to know each other better and accept each other the way they were and worked to change the things that they both saw were holding them back they became best friends in no time, but still sometimes he wanted to slap her just for her to stop crying and stop being such a drama queen. "I can tell, you know?"

"Well…" she sobbed and for the first time Kurt saw a faint smile trying to appear on her lips. "He kissed me again…" then the smile faded back and she looked terrified again and tried to clean her teary face "and I kissed him back."

"A second time, Rachel! Really?"

"I didn't want it to stop. I wasn't even thinking about Finn."

"And to believe I was thinking about backing up your marriage."

"I know, Kurt, I'm sorry. I'm such a mess." She cried again, loudly.

"Have you told Finn?"

"No! What am I supposed to tell him?"

"The truth!" Kurt looked at her and tried not to scream.

"We already had a huge fight over the phone when he found out that Jesse's coming back… I just can't fight with him anymore…"

"So your idea is to keep this a secret? What a great way to start a married life, Barbra."

"Tell me what to do and I'll do it! I haven't been sleeping well and all I do is think about him!"

"Finn?" Kurt asked trying to stop her from raising the volume of her voice even more.

"Cooper…" his eyes widened when he heard her, the way she said his name and avoided his eyes surprised him. She had never spoken Finn's name in that way… there was something sentimental, but also a sensuality that she didn't seem to have when she spoke about his step-brother.

"You have to tell Finn."

"He'll call off the marriage and break up with me! You know how jealous he is and the things he does when he's upset."

"We can just run off with Blaine to Broadway and never be heard from again…" Kurt joked and touched her hand over the table.

"That's a great idea. Can we go now?" she sobbed again, feeling overwhelmed by all what was happening to her.

"Take some time alone, Rachel."

"What..?" Kurt turned around and saw a beautiful short-haired blonde girl rocking a stroller back and forth and sipping on cup. "Quinn? Didn't they teach you at Sunday school that is not good to eavesdrop?" Rachel looked at her and realized it wasn't the first time she heard that advice, but where did she hear it before?

"They also taught me not to have sex before marriage and here I am." She smiled and walked over to their table, the baby in the stroller giggling at the sudden change of movement. "I'm sorry for eavesdropping, but Rachel's crying was scaring Beth."

"Your big idea is for her to take some time alone. Not tell Finn?"

"She needs to think about this and she needs some time without other people influencing her decision. It's also better for her not to face Blaine and Finn and you and everyone that knows about this, every single day and not being able to make up her mind. I've been there, remember?"

"I'm sorry for being so defensive, Quinn. That actually makes sense. "

"It's fine, Kurt. I know that you're worried about her." Quinn's green eyes looked straight into Rachel's sad brown eyes and asked. "Do you love Finn?"

"I… well… "

"If you didn't say yes right away it means that you're not sure or you don't"

"I do, I love him… but I'm not sure about where are we going to go from here… the wedding and the whole married life and me not going to New York…"

"Not going to New York? Did Finn convince you not to go? Is that it? You're leaving me… and Blaine… and our plans? What about NYADA?"

"Kurt, please…"

"No, Rachel! I'm tired of this! I don't know what's happened to you! What happened with you wanting to be a star? What about us living together… and your carefully planned future? You need time alone to think about where this is taking you; your dads' aren't home, so take the rest of the weekend and think about it."

"Kurt…" Rachel cried. Why was this situation going from bad to worse?

"Quinn, can you take her home?"

"Yes, but…" she had never seen Kurt so angry with anyone and the look of disappointment in his face made Rachel cry even harder. She knew what it felt to see your world crumble before your eyes and she wasn't going to leave Rachel alone. Not this time. "I'll take her home."

"Thank you, Quinn. See you on Monday, Rachel"

"Please…"

"Let him go, Rachel" Quinn's hand took hers and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "I know you're going through something sad and stressing now, but you have to think about him too."

"I'm so selfish…"

"Yes, well, it's nice to know you noticed it after all this time. Let's go. I have to drop Beth off and you need to get home and think about this."

They walked over to Quinn's car, Rachel carried Beth and smiled when the beautiful baby giggled and smiled at her, she was her mother's baby after all, there was a bond there and also a bond with this blonde cheerleader that she used to dislike so much. After they strapped Beth to her seat and started driving, Quinn decided that the silence was too much.

"Did you like Blaine's brother? Would you like to see him again?" Rachel's mouth fell open, but she didn't answer. "Do you want to kiss him again?" the brunette squirmed in her seat and blushed. "I can't say I blame you, he is very attractive and he seems… well, different from Finn."

"I just don't know what to do…" Rachel looked back to check on Beth and tickled her little feet making her laugh. "She's so beautiful… Just like you, Quinn."

"Well, Shelby says she's quite a handful… so that makes her like Puck."

"Do you miss him?"

"I already decided what I am going to do, remember? I'm going to Yale and even if I miss him I've made my peace with my choice. You, more than anyone of us, should know that chasing your dreams sometimes means you have to use your head instead of your heart."

"But I…" Quinn parked in front of Rachel's house.

"Look, you've asked my advice before and for what's happening now it's pretty obvious that you haven't followed it. This time you are not asking for it, but I'm going to give it to you anyway. If you want this to be over… the sleepless nights, the dreaded morning and the awful day then you have to take some time and think about it. Not only about what happened with Blaine's brother and the current status of you being engaged to Finn and the fights you've been having with him; think about your future, what you really want to do and decide. After that you have to accept that decision and be happy about it… not because I'm telling you but because deep down you know it's the right thing to do."

"How do you know about…?" Rachel waved and smiled to Beth, her lips twitched into a beautiful smile and she waved back.

"I've seen him and heard the things he says to you, Rachel; and I used to date him, remember?"

"Why weren't we friends before…?"

"Because you wanted Finn and I was his girlfriend…"

"I'm sorry."

"A little bit late, RuPaul." Quinn smiled and slowly hugged Rachel, tightly when she felt Rachel relax even though tears were pouring from her eyes. "Take your time and my advice… it would be a first."

Rachel waved from the sidewalk and followed Quinn's car until she turned at the corner. Even if she was sad, she actually felt better after talking to Kurt and Quinn.

She went to her room, took out her phone and sent a text to Kurt: "I'm sorry. Thank you".

She placed her cellphone in her commode and looked at her reflection in the mirror, she looked sad and tired, modesty aside she had always had a spark, one that after the first time she got slushied she promised it would grow to be a flame and then a fire and then she would never let it go out; Kurt was right, what had happened to her? What happened with the gold star after her name, her desire to become a star? Where was the girl that sang with her best friend on the stage after sneaking in the theater and decided that the feeling she had there was what she wanted to experience for the rest of her life?

Her cell phone vibrated, she was sure it was Finn, but still she checked it just to be sure; maybe Kurt was less mad and wanted to talk to her. It vibrated again and again and again and again. Now she was positive it was Finn.

11:00am

You didn't wait for me. Why did you leave so early yesterday after rehearsal?

11:01am

Did Kurt take you home very late after dinner? I told him not to.

11:02 am

Why didn't you answer my message last night?

11:03 am

Why didn't you call me?

11:04 am

What happened with Blaine?

11:05 am

Did he say something to you?

11:06am

Why aren't you answering?

She read the last one and felt angry, how was she supposed to answer if he didn't give her the time to answer? Suddenly she realized he had always been like this, why was she noticing this until now? She quickly answered him.

11:07

I'm sorry.

11:08

Are you OK? You've been crying a lot lately.

11:09

I'm just stressed about the wedding.

11:10

That's what I thought. Do you want me to come over?

11:11

No, it's ok. I need time to practice.

11:12

Perfect! I'm going to Puck's with Sam, will probably stay over.

11:13

Have a nice weekend with them.

11:14

Love you. See you on Monday.

11:15

Love you too.

She just stared at the screen after sending the message. Yes, she loved him, but why didn't it feel like it used to feel? She was usually happy to read his messages, to be with him, to sing and think of him… Suddenly she remembered that this time when she sang it wasn't Finn's face what motivated her. It was Cooper's smile. She blushed and smiled when she remembered him, then a silly giggle escaped her lips when she remembered his kiss. It wasn't awkward, there was no pressure, no picnic blanket, no ulterior motives, no previous feelings that made her nervous, she didn't force it to happen and he didn't force it on her, it felt… perfect.

She sighed and decided to take a bath to see if it helped her relax; she had two days to think about… well, everything; the wedding, the status of her relationship with Finn, her future, NYADA and Cooper. She needed music; that was the only part of her life she was sure she needed; music to be her safe haven…

After selecting a playlist she closed the door to her bedroom and then the bathroom door it was her alone time and for the first time in months she didn't feel guilty for needing it.


	9. One Step At A Time

_**A/N: Thanks to fatima343 and Supernatural-Girl17 for reviewing our fic; we appreciate it and we also thank all of you for reading it.**_

After dozing off in the bathtub for about an hour and a half she decided it was time for her to really sit down and think about what was going on in her life or she wasn't going to do it.

Wrapping a towel around her body and one around her head to hold her wet hair she went out and checked her phone; fifteen messages: one from Quinn reminding her to take her time and one from Puck that reassured her that Finn wouldn't bother her for the rest of the weekend, only Quinn could've told Puck about it or maybe Finn said something and her former boyfriend figured it out. However the whole Finn won't bother you sentence wasn't really true since the rest of the texts were from him.

She sighed and deleted them all after thanking Quinn again, since she missed her morning beauty routine she might as well do it now.

After getting dressed in some "I'm staying in clothes" she decided to sit on her bed and look at the ceiling while she listened to the rest of her playlist and reflect about what was happening, without her noticing it she started to paint her nails with the nailpolish Kurt had made her buy a few days ago and she didn't use because Finn told her it wasn't her style.

Images of her passing through WMHS started to roll by, her first steps with New Directions, all the trouble they went through with the leaked setlist, Sue Sylvester's constant harassment, all the slushies she'd got, her time with Puck… her time with Jesse and all the emotional turmoil she experienced when he decided to leave her for a trophy, but she noticed something she had with him that didn't have with Finn: honesty. She was able to tell him that she wasn't ready to have sex with him and Jesse understood… then she started to remember all the things she did to be with Finn and felt really stupid. What was she thinking when she told him about Quinn and her lie about who was her baby's father? Was she really so selfish and so mean… so deluded in her feelings for Finn that she actually thought it was the right thing to do. It didn't matter if Quinn told her she was ok for being honest; it wasn't her place to do it.

Going out with Puck just to spite Finn? Accepting Jesse because he was a perfect partner, but deep down still think about Finn? And then when she was finally getting to picture Jesse in her life… why did Finn decide to mess her up again?

Then Prom Night… Finn acting like he wanted her and fighting with Jesse, but being Quinn's prom date and boyfriend? Suddenly her playlist played Jar of Hearts and she noticed she sang that to Finn, looking straight at him, but did she really listened to what the song said or was she just sad about not being with him?

She stood up and started singing; there it was… those few words made her think about her whole relationship with Finn…

_I hear you're asking all around_

_If I am anywhere to be found_

_**But I have grown too strong**_

_**To ever fall back in your arms.**_

_Dear, it took so long just to feel alright_

_Remember how to put back the light in my eyes_

_I wish I had missed the first time that we kissed_

_**Cause you broke all your promises**_

_**And now you're back**_

_**You don't get to get me back**__._

Yes, she wasn't strong enough at the moment she sang this to him, not that night, but now it was different, something clicked inside her head and her heart and realized that if she wanted to be strong she had to take the decision; nobody was going to do it for her.

Did she really want to marry Finn? Would she have agreed if her NYADA letter had arrived earlier? Her heart gave a hurtful beat when her head answered the question: No, she wouldn't have. She felt so bad, so pressured, so… empty that she clung to the one thing it was safe: Finn. Because that's what he did too. She remembered something that filled her eyes with tears: "Why can't I have something in my life that's special, that means something?" he said and she was sitting there, right next to him and he didn't even glance at her.

Then she remembered what he said before he proposed: "Look I have something to talk to you about but I want you to promise me that you won't say a word until I'm done. I know that's sorta hard for you so I need you to promise me." Did he really tell her to shut up in a cute manner? If anyone else told her that she was sure she would get angry and tell them not to insult her… why was it different with Finn?

She remembered the feeling she got when she sang with Kurt… she needed that now, the feeling of the lights, the stage, and the lights off for the guests, the curtain…the rush.

The rest of her decisions depended on what she wanted to do now; she was still hesitating about what her head told her she should do, but she had to do it… even if she wavered in the future this was the first step and she need to take it now. One step at a time.

She looked at the clock, it was almost three. When did it get so late? Of course she couldn't go to New York and sneak into the theater again, but she wanted to regain that feeling and it had to be now, after that she could go buy something to eat and keep thinking about her future, which was becoming clear for her.

She quickly got dressed, put on some makeup, grabbed her car keys and drove to the only place in Lima that ever made her feel that rush, that certainty; even if it had been months since it made her feel completely happy, the stage at McKinley.

She needed a spotlight, but she had never taken the time to understand how it all worked from behind, she was always on the stage and now she felt like she needed to take her time to understand it; she walked to the center of the stage… maybe there was somebody up on the cabin that could her help with it. She looked but it seemed it was empty, well, the lights already on would have to do; she took of her coat and put it on a small stool on the right side of the stage.

Walking over to the center of the stage she realized that she hadn't thought about a song for this, she pressed play in the recorder and found one she hadn't sung in a while; it was the appropriate one for everything she was feeling. Her future, Finn and Cooper.

Once it was over she opened her eyes and realized that the lights on the stage were off and there was only a spotlight illuminating her, she sighed and smiled towards the control cabin. She felt a lot better now, she stood up and put on her coat, waved and said thanks to whoever was there that had helped her.

As she drove over to BreadstiX she was happy, like a weight had lifted from her chest, but she was now sure of something. Marrying so young wasn't an option. She needed to talk with Finn on Monday and get some things straight. Going to New York was her dream and she wasn't going to let it go. They could still have a future together but not right now.

Placing the food on the table a thought hit her: She was thinking about a future with Finn, again. Her heart kept still while she was deciding about New York, but now it began to influence her thoughts and made her feel bad for thinking the things she thought before about her fiancé. If she loved him then they could talk and she could fix the things that he didn't like about her She was sure that Finn would be reasonable if given the chance to be and if she was honest with him. They were engaged after all.

Nervous again. That's what she was feeling and as she poured herself a glass of water she realized that she actually thought that SHE was the one that needed to be fixed… it felt wrong. If they were a couple weren't they supposed to work together for their future?

She didn't feel like eating anything anymore and stashed the food in the fridge. Going back to her room she decided to go to sleep, yes it was too early, but she just couldn't stay awake anymore. Between the lack of sleep, the stress she felt, the tears, the decision she took and the ones still to take she decided that music and sleep was what she needed at the moment.

She changed her clothes, cleaned her face and did a semi-beauty routine; she put on her pajamas and crawled into bed, rolling on her side she put on her earphones and pressed play.

Tears started to flow as she grasped the song that was playing: Turning Tables.


	10. Protective

_**Sorry for the delay kids! Work and school keeps us away from our beloved characters, but here we are! I hope you like this… And R/R is always appreciated! **_

A Saturday afternoon for both Kurt and Blaine would usually mean the two of them watching a movie or just cuddling for the rest of the day, but when Blaine opened the door to meet his boyfriend he was sure that this was not going to be a normal Saturday. Once the door opened Kurt bolted right in and straight into Blaine's arms, resting his head on his boyfriend's shoulder

"Baby, I missed you so much."

"Kurt, we talked almost all night yesterday." Blaine joked happily.

Kurt looked back at his boyfriend and held his head in his hands and kissed him passionately, Blaine responded the kiss and held Kurt tightly against him but found the whole thing incredibly odd and backed out slightly, even if he just wanted to ravish Kurt right then and there

"Not that I don't appreciate you jumping on me a moment ago, but what's going on Kurt?" The taller boy walked to the Anderson living room and sat on the biggest couch and motioned Blaine to him.

"Come on, I have to explain." Blaine closed the front door and sat next to Kurt; he took his boyfriend's hand and caressed it gently.

"So, what's going on baby?"

And Kurt began to explain the whole Rachel fiasco at the Lima Bean.

Cooper had a rough night and wasn't able to sleep since the talk he had with Blaine yesterday. He'd be tossing and turning all night and all Saturday morning, not being able to stop thinking about Rachel's face and Blaine screaming at him to let her go. It was about 2pm when he decided to visit the outside world and went to the kitchen to get some coffee. After all, he had almost a 12 hour drive and he needed to be awake for the rest of the day so he could fully rest at night and get on the road early on Sunday morning.

He already had a steaming cup of joe when he heard Kurt come into the living room. Cooper was going to quickly run from the living room up to his old room, to give them some privacy, but Kurt mentioned Rachel and his name in the same sentence and decided to stay put. He sat on the counter next to the door and listened intently as he drank from his mug.

"And now she wants to stay in Lima and not go to New York with me… us, Blaine. She is ruining her life, I'm sure Finn convinced her and she's also very confused about the wedding and it's all your dear brother's fault." Kurt huffed exasperated. "I'm sorry, but what's wrong with him? Didn't you tell him she's engaged and that she's a high maintenance girl?" Cooper held his mug tightly with both his hands and started regretting not listening to Blaine.

"I know baby, I'm sorry." Blaine began after a couple of minutes of silence. "He... He has a mind of his own. And I think things took a turn for the worse, not only for Rachel, it seems."

"No Blaine, don't go there." Cooper's eyes widened.

"We talked yesterday, after I came home from rehearsal and I think" Blaine got quiet for a few seconds and Kurt pushed him on.

"What? Blaine? Is he in love with her?"

Cooper quickly jumped from where he sat and placed the cup on the counter. He went through the door of the kitchen and said

"Don't you dare answer that, Blaine." Both Kurt and Blaine jumped in surprise as the eldest Anderson burst through the door.

"So, you are in love with her, aren't you?" Cooper couldn't manage to get a word out of his mouth and Blaine was still silent, Kurt only managed to laugh "Are you kidding me?" he pointed at Cooper and looked back at Blaine and said "is he joking, Blaine?" Cooper sat on an armchair right in front of the couple and began explaining

"I'm... I'm not sure of that, Kurt. For starters: she's Blaine's age" Blaine coughs "Ok, ok, she's one year older than you. But I think it's just a silly infatuation, Kurt. Once I get back to Boston I'll forget all about it in a matter of days." Kurt snorted at the last remark. Cooper stood up to face down at Kurt and asked "Anything you like to add, Hummel?"

"You can try to forget this, Cooper and if you don't to talk about it, that's fine. It seems Rachel is not the only one that needs to think about things..." Kurt stood to face Cooper.

"She is, huh?" Cooper said, with a glint of hope in his voice. "Anyways, she'll get over it soon, she's a big girl,"

"She's fragile. She's always been fragile. You may not know it, but I do."

"But..." Cooper hesitates for a second "She'll be ok, won't she? She has the both of you to lean on." Blaine noticed that Kurt is now standing mere inches from Cooper and stands next to his boyfriend, he's afraid Kurt might start clawing Cooper's eyes out.

"So what? You are just going to run away to Boston and pretend this never happened?" Blaine tried to calm Kurt down.

"Kurt, it's ok. I... I know he will be ok." Cooper rested a hand over Kurt's shoulder.

"See. I'm a big boy Kurt, us Anderson men are smart. You should have known that by now. Don't you trust Blaine?" Kurt pushed back Cooper with all his strength, moving him a couple of inches back.

"I trust him, but I don't know if I can trust you!" he says as he points at Cooper and shoves a finger into his chest "You can leave and pretend this never happened and that whatever you said to Blaine isn't real or you didn't mean it, while she's being crying and not sleeping and now she's home, alone trying to figure out something that would have never happened if you hadn't kiss her!"

Cooper looks speechless at Kurt, who is all flustered and back at Blaine, who is looking up at his brother in shock. Cooper runs upstairs and Blaine can hear the door of Cooper's bedroom slam shut. Blaine faced Kurt, placing both hands on his shoulders and trying to calm him down.

"Babe, that was a little too much. I know Rachel is your best friend, but I know Cooper... He'll make things right." Kurt's head was hanging low and decided to sit down, trying to hide the tears from his face by cleaning them with his sleeve.

"How is he going to make things right, Blaine? You said you've never seen him like this, well I've never seen her like this! Even when she was with Jesse she was thinking about Finn and now she's not even considering telling him what happened." Blaine sat next to him, placing one arm around him and hugging him tightly.

"I know Kurt. I'm so sorry" and kisses him softly "I'll talk to him before he leaves."


End file.
